Alex Mahernia, promoted to the North American chief creative officer role at Rosetta in 2013 before it became one with Razorfish, left the agency earlier this month.
An internal memo from November 2014 which announced Publicis’ plans to fold Rosetta into the Razorfish Global Network also confirmed the departure of then-Global CCO Lars Bastholm (who is now a global CCO at Google’s The Zoo). The implication, according to tipsters, was that Mahernia would replace him.
That was not meant to be. While Mahernia was not mentioned in tips regarding a series staffing changes that affected the Rosetta/Razorfish group in April, other sources claimed that he would not be running the agency’s creative operations–which would instead be organized on a regional basis with Mahernia reporting to CTO Joe Lozito.
In April, a Rosetta spokesperson told us that the shop was hiring to fill dozens of open positions; it does not appear to have a global or North American CCO at the moment.
From the agency:
We can confirm that Alex Mahernia has left the agency to pursue other career opportunities. Alex has played an enormous role in our growth – over the last 16 years, he led and significantly influenced our creative, UX, design and VMG teams and helped develop a number of world–class offerings while cultivating the growth and development of the industry’s brightest creative talent. We are grateful to Alex for all he has given to our business and wish him great luck in his future endeavors. He’s an extraordinary individual, and we’ve been lucky to have him in our family.
From Mahernia himself:
“I am beyond grateful for my career and the opportunity to work with such an amazing and talented group. There is no doubt in my mind that Rosetta will continue to strive and succeed for many years to come, and will always have a very special place in my heart. Most importantly, I have truly enjoyed my personal relationships with every single individual and continue to believe in the talent and the absolute magic and passion each person brings to work every day. I am humbled by Rosetta’s brilliance and look forward to witnessing the agency’s success in the future.”
Prior to joining Rosetta in 2011, Mehernia served as CCO at California’s LEVEL Studios.
While neither statement addresses the now-former CCO’s future plans, he may have revealed his new employer on Twitter: business management software company Mindbody.
Hello beautiful. @mindbodyonlinepic.twitter.com/AILdshqNp6
— Alexander Mahernia (@amahernia) May 18, 2015
The new offices look nice.